Indian Navy plans to acquire how many diesel-electric submarines under Project-75 India at Rs 50,000 crore?

To counter growing Chinese footprint in Indian ocean region, the Indian Navy has initiated the process to acquire six lethal submarines under the ambitious Project-75 India (I). The project would cost Rs 50,000 crore. Under Project 75-India, the Navy wants to build six conventional diesel-electric submarines which would be almost 50% bigger than the under-construction Scorpene class submarines being built at the Mazagon Dockyards Limited in Mumbai. As per the requirements stated by the maritime force, it wants the submarines to be equipped with heavy-duty firepower as it wants the boats to have at least 12 Land Attack Cruise Missiles (LACM) along with Anti-Ship cruise missiles (ASCM).

The Indian Navy held the 2nd edition of the bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and Vietnam Peoples' Navy, (IN - VPN BILAT EX) at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam during 13th to 16th April, 2019. The exercise was undertaken as a part of the ongoing Overseas Deployment of Eastern Fleet ships to South East Asian countries. INS Kolkata under the command of Captain Aditya Hara and INS Shakti under the command of Captain Sriram Amur participated in the exercise.

INS Ranjit, a Rajput class front-line missile destroyer, was decommissioned at a ceremony at Naval Dockyard at Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, after having served the Indian Navy for 36 years. On the sunset of May 6, 2019, the National Flag, Naval Ensign and Commissioning Pennant onboard the INS Ranjit were lowered for one last time, indicating the end of the Ranjit era in the Indian Navy.

Varuna 19.1 is the first part of the Indo-French joint naval exercise. It is being held off the Goa coast from 1st to 10th May 2019. The exercise will see the participation of the French Navy's aircraft carrier FNS Charles de Gaulle, two destroyers, FNS Forbin and FNS Provence, the frigate FNS Latouche-Treville, the tanker FNS Marne and a nuclear submarine. From the Indian side, the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, destroyer INS Mumbai, the Teg-class frigate, INS Tarkash, the Shishumar- class submarine, INS Shankul, and the Deepak- class fleet tanker, INS Deepak, are taking part in the exercise.

India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable long-range ballistic missile Agni-IV, with a strike range of 4,000 km, as part of a user trial by the Army. The strategic surface-to-surface Agni-IV missile was flight tested from launch complex-4 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Dr Abdul Kalam Island, earlier known as Wheeler Island. This was the 7th trial of Agni-IV missile. The last trial conducted by the strategic force command (SFC) of the Indian Army from the same base on January 2, 2018 was successful.

Chinese Navy commissioned two new Type 052D guided missile destroyers in Dalian, a coastal city. They are the 19th and 20th ships in the class and are named as Tangshan and Suzhou. China, at present 20 Type 052Ds either in active service or to be launched for service soon. The destroyers are fast and warships are operated for long distances. It is used to accompany the aircraft carriers. The newly developed Type 052D destroyers are the upgrades of its previous version Type 052C.

The Civil Aviation ministry launched the country's first Geographical Indication (GI) store at Dabolim International Airport in Goa. Union Minister for Civil Aviation Suresh Prabhu stated that the GI stores will promote local products made by the artisans and handicrafts at the airport. The store is set up by Airports Authority of India in partnership with The Cashew Export Promotional Council of India.

Directorate of Indian Defence University (IDU) is organizing a 2-day workshop on Space Warfare and Technology on 2-3 May,19 in New Delhi. It is being held for senior and middle-level officers from the three Services. The workshop intends to cover Weaponisation and Militarisation of Space, preparation for Absorption of High-End Technology for Self-Sustenance in Space Operations, and more.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation organised a conclave on the theme 'flying for all' where more than 200 delegates including industry leaders and regulators deliberated on issues and opportunities in the sector. Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu stated that the Conclave was about the future of Indian aviation, bringing together industry leaders, government and regulators for setting the tone and propelling us to realize our Vision-2040.

Ministry of Defence, India has signed the U.S. for 72,400 SIG716 assault rifles for front-line soldiers deployed in operational areas. Of the 72,400 rifles, 66,400 are meant for the Army, 2,000 for the Navy and 4,000 for the Air Force. The broad parameters for the weapon are an effective range of 500 m and a weight of less than 3 kg. The new rifles will replace the Indian National Small Arms System (INSAS) rifles.